2015 Ford Taurus Sel on 2040-cars

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KBB 2013 Brand Image Awards has some obvious and oddball winners

The sixth edition of the Kelley Blue Book Brand Image Awards have crowned a wide range of winners - in a couple of cases the recipient of the laurels might say more about KBB users than they do about the actual winner. Compiled from the responses of more than 12,000 shoppers on KBB.com over the past year, there are 13 categories broken into non-luxury, luxury and truck segments "representing the combined wisdom of the American car-buying public."
The award categories have been revamped this year, with some dropping off, some new ones appearing and at least one other given a new term. What isn't surprising is that Honda won Most Trusted Brand for the second year running, Best Value Brand for the third year in a row and took Best Overall Brand, which wasn't on last year's list of awards.
On our own shores, in the non-luxury categories Chrysler got Most Refined Brand and Buick took Best Value Luxury Brand. Neither one of those marques won anything in last year's Brand Image Awards, while Cadillac, which won Best Interior Design Brand and Best Comfort Brand last year - those awards disappeared this year - went home without a single accolade.

2018 Ford Expedition spied looking stylish

The Ford Expedition and Lincoln Navigator got a cool reception for their 2015 warmed-over redesign. But with big, high-riding vehicles once again in vogue, Ford is pushing ahead with a ground-up redesign of its biggest SUVs. Based on these spy shots, the Expedition will continue to serve as the Navigator's more affordable twin. Yes, that's a bold prediction, considering we still haven't spotted Lincoln testing the new Navigator, but study the greenhouses on this Expedition prototype and the Navigator Concept from New York – from the arrow-straight belt line to the extra-long rear window to the aggressively raked windshield, this Expedition's overall profile is broadly similar to what Lincoln previewed earlier this year. While our spies claim the new Expedition will look to the F-150 for design inspiration, we see a departure from past Expedition tradition. Unlike the supposed Expedition spy shots we showed you nearly a year ago – which was nothing more than an SUV with an F-150's nose grafted on, this prototype's front-end styling looks softer and more aerodynamic, with a smaller grille and headlights, almost like an Escape or Edge. This kind of change would explain the additional front-end camouflage. In back, our spies rightly point out that Ford fitted a faux rear end to disguise the rear window's rake – expect the real thing to feature the angled rear window previewed on the Navigator Concept. Look at the last image in the gallery for a better idea of how the Expedition's rear window will actually look. We can't say a lot about the taillights, because of the camo, but non-LED taillights are present. We'd expect Ford to offer LEDs on higher trim levels. While the F-150's styling might not make the transition to the Expedition, its powertrains and emphasis on lightweight aluminum will. Our spies report the biggest SUV will ride on a new T3 platform and feature an aluminum body, with the F-150's 3.5-liter EcoBoost V6. Expect a ten-speed automatic transmission and start/stop tech for sure, while the smaller 2.7-liter, twin-turbo V6 could slot in as the Expedition's base engine – we're less sure on that one. And we're even more uncertain of the rumors of an Expedition Hybrid. Our spies report it could mate a 3.5-liter V6 with an electric motor(s) and battery packs for a more economical full-size SUV. Expect to see the 2018 Expedition debut in January, at the 2017 Detroit Auto Show.

Former Ford CEO Mulally won't run for president

Alan Mulally will not be following his successful term as president and CEO of Ford Motor Company with a run at an even bigger presidency. Rumors that the 68-year-old former Boeing exec would make a run at the White House sprouted after his apparent dodging of a reporter's questions about a potential candidacy during a forum in Indianapolis.
"I really think it's important that we all pull together. We really need to pull together around a compelling vision for our country and a comprehensive strategy to do it and work together. We really need to do it," Mulally said at the conference, according to The Detroit News.
He's since clarified by saying, "[I'm] honored at the suggestion, but that is not a role I am considering."